This is where you can ask all the small questions you have about bras that aren't big enough to make your own thread about. If you're looking for fit advice or bra recommendations please make your own thread. =)

Consider signing this Petition to Nordstrom to start carrying 28 banded bras. Even if this isn't your band size, still consider signing it for those that do, because after all, we ALL deserve a bra that fits if we want it!

Does anyone have suggestions for bras (in ~34GG, wider wires) that run firm in the band? I don't necessarily mean that they run small/tight in the band, but where the band is is made of stiffer stuff than a lot of the very elastic mesh I'm seeing?

EDIT: And/or is there a way to search Bratabase for this? I know I can search by band length (stretched or unstretched) and that it provides an average firmness/percent stretch. But I can't see a way to specifically search for less stretchy bands.

It's based on data on bratabase, and if I remember correctly the numbers on the scale represent the average deviation in stretched band length from the band size. E.g., the Porcelain Viva strapless on average stretches 3in longer than the band size (so a 32 stretches to 35).

That said, Masquerade bras seem to use a less elastic material and go up to a GG cup. (The exception being the Amour, which in my experience used a stretchy material).

Thanks, I remember that post and I should have bookmarked/saved it! I'm tempted to place another order with Comexim since I really like their bras but I was curious about the other brands too. Someone listed an Avocado bra a while ago on bratabase and it was so pretty! Too bad it wasn't my size or I would have brought it :'(

So I'm slowly building my bra collection and you ladies have been a lot of help to me. I'm having an issue though and needs some advice. When I first try on my bras they Are awesome! But after wearing them all day I discover fit issues. Mostly the top of the cup where it connects to the strap rubs my armpit and I have to scoop my armpit flubber back in throughout the day. Also underwire digging into my armpit.

Am I being too picky? Is this something I just have to deal with? Mostly this happens with 36H Cleo, panach and elomi. My best fitting bra is Curvy Kate 34HH.

I have this problem in my Freya Patsy half cup. I think part of it is the straps are too wide set(smaller band, larger cup). I've seen other ladies talk about it, and I know there's a big issue with EM bras being that way. Could be an issue with the material the bra is made from too.

Thanks :) I notice it more in my bigger bands so maybe it is an issue with the straps being too wide for me. I've only tried one 34 so far but have 2 more on the way. But I feel loads better and can't feel wires digging or straps rubbing in the 34HH

I don't think you're being too picky (I think writing to manufacturers is a great idea), however, it's also something you just have to deal with (by either toughing it out, or altering your own bras) because pretty much ALL bras are built like that in this size range. Your other option is full cup bras with center-pull straps.

Either by moving the straps in, or cutting the armhole deeper, depending on what the actual cause of your problem is.

I'm short and have high-set breasts, so it's usually the side of the cup that's digging in there for me, and if I cut the armhole bigger it would solve the problem without moving the actual strap position.

I want to get some bralettes for shlepping around the house in, just so my boobs aren't flailing in two directions every time I walk. I have fairly shallow boobs- what sort of size would you rec? L, XL?

That's a good idea! I like to go braless at home but sometimes I need a little support if I'm doing anything and a bralette would probably work great for around the house. I hope you get some feedback so I can use the info too! : )

I'd go for a Large. That's what I get in cheapo sports bras to lounge about in. My boobies would be trying to escape out of the bottom of an XL. The Large seems to hold mine fairly still for fun household activities like cleaning, cooking and the most fun of all-yard work.

Is there any good medium between padded/moulded t-shirt bras and the thin-fabric variety (what are they called)? I used to always wear t-shirt bras but recently got a couple of thin fabric ones and they are SO much more comfortable! Now that I'm used to them, I don't want to wear my t-shirt bras which means ruling out all my cheapy shirts that the seams/nipples show though :P Also, I now feel like the padded ones make me look like I'm trying to make my boobs look bigger.

Try some lace bras. The ones that are lined and over there have lace? I'm not sure if I described them correctly. If the lace pattern is simple, it won't show under clothes and it will also cover the seams and nipples. I guess it's because they are double layered, so they cover the nipple and the lace cover the seams.

The Freya Lauren family of bras are lined soft cups. They come in typical Freya plunge and half-cup shapes, except the Lauren half-cups (like the Totally Tartan) are a bit more closed on top than the padded half-cups.

When I was vacuuming in my mom's room earlier, I had a peek at the bra drying on the rack and saw it was a 36C. She is significantly skinnier than I am and I wear a 34 band, not to mention I've seen her band riding up both under clothes and when she wears just a sports bra. What's the best way to advise her to measure herself properly?

Invite her to buy bras with you. Even if the store near you doesn't carry your size.

When I told my mother I couldn't find bras in my size, she looked at me and said, "there's no way you're bigger than a C". So we went to buy bras, I tried them on and she saw how I didn't fit in them. I tried D's and DD's and they still didn't fit. She saw that and I pointed out why they didn't fit (besides my breasts almost hanging out).

She now believes she's wearing the wrong size. We haven't had much opportunity to visit the only store around here that carry more sizes and there have been some technical difficulties we have no idea how to overcome, but she's much more open minded about bra sizes now.

This blog post has some suggestions on approaching the topic with a friend, which might be helpful?

It's kind of tough to approach telling your mom she's wearing her bra wrong though. Which is why I don't talk to my mom about her 38B VS bras, even though I know her full bust measurement is around 36".

My mom was telling me how she had just moved up to 38C from 36C or something. I knew this was next to impossible since visually she was probably 34 band but with less boobage than me. So I just said I was trying to get rid of some things (which she is always prodding me to do lol) and asked her to try on my older 36DD to see if it fit. It did :] Not the optimal solution but a good baby step, she was so surprised she could be a lower number!

They do, hunt around their site a bit. You could also try Ewa Michalak SM or HM cuts, or Kris Line. (Kris Line has kind of weird sizing, you'll need to size up a bit from your regular size. I wear a 2 cups larger in their bras from my regular size.)

I have poked around Comexim's site, and all of the bras that have descriptions say something about "foam lined" according to google translate. Do you happen to know the names of any of their models that are soft cup?

Has anyone ever received a moulded bra that got quite squished in the mail and couldn't reshape it to exactly the original shape? I got the deco honey plunge and the cups got squished so now the cups curve outwards at the top. There are also wrinkles near the gore but that not as important.

I tried soaking it and gently tugging it to see if it would go back to its original shape and it helped a lot but there's still a slight curve. Its annoying because it makes the cup slightly more visible under shirts. I've also wondered if I might've just gotten a badly made one that got worse after being shipped. Any thoughts or suggestions? I would really like to fix it since it fits me really well and return shipping is a bummer (Also seemed like they don't want to take it back unless its a manufacturing defect when I contacted them.). Thanks!

I've just tried both in a 32H (so, the same size compared to each other but different from your size). Personally, I found a much bigger issue in shape (FOB/FOT) than I did in size. Also, at 30E, Bratabase (boobs in bra, NSFW) lists Lucy as about 0.6inches deeper than a 30E Juna. Assuming those measurements are accurate (each is averaging 8 measurements), if it were me, I'd probably keep the same size.

Another week, another cup size... Last week my measurements had gone from 28FF/G to 26H/28GG. My measurements I took yesterday put me at a 26HH (and could likely fit a 24J if my underbust shrinks another 3/4 inches or so). Should I just stop trying to find bras for a while? I've been trying to keep up-- ordering 28GG bras and more Rixie clips... I have so much quadboob and so much band looseness, and while my old 30Fs and 28FFs aren't terribly uncomfortable, they're obviously not great...

Do I just wait and see what I need if/when they stop? This is costing me a fortune. How long should I wait if/when my size starts to stabilize before ordering more bras? Also, how hard is the alteration for shortening a band? Hahah.

As an example, I wore my 30E Parfait Caseys until I replaced them with a 30G....and I maybe still wear that 30G now because I don't think actual t-shirt bras exist in the size/shape I need them too.

Altering bands is pretty easy, depending on how you do it. The ribbon/elastic method is the easiest, and also reversible. I would NEVER shorten a band like this though, as it causes the elastic part of the band to dig in more...but if you aren't very squishy around your ribcage you likely won't have a huge issue with that.

There are a ton of ways to shorten bands. I made a post a while ago here with a ton of different tutorials on things and there are a fair amount of band-tightening links on it. Check them out and see if there's one that you feel comfortable doing yourself! This is my personal favorite and it's easier for me than the elastic, but everyone has their own preferences.

Sounds like a good idea! Make sure your stitches are very close together (if they're far apart they'll put more strain on the fabric and make it pucker a little), but overall it's really straightforward and hard to mess up. Also, because you're not cutting anything, if it doesn't come out how you like, you can just use a seam ripper to take out your stitches and you'll have everything back as it was before (with, possibly, a few tiny little holes from the needle).

I don't really know where that mindset comes from. I know that's what it says in the Venusian Glow tutorial, but there's no reasoning for it.

A lot of bra companies use the same underwires for sister sizes, so you're really only doing the equivalent of that by cutting the band shorter. (This is the method that Ewa Michalak uses to scale all of their bras as well.)

You're really only going to run into wire/cup deformations for 2 reasons, the first being that the cup is the wrong shape/size/width to begin with (like if you were trying to turn a 38B into 30E) or if you take in the band too far (the same issue that occurs when people wear too small bands).

Wire deformation can also occur as a result of the wires being too weak, but you can test that in advance, just by grabbing the band at the points you intend to cut, and stretching them apart to your desired stretched measurement along a measuring tape.

As a sewist, take your time with taking the band in.. you'd be surprised at how little you'd need to take off to make a 30 band into a 28 band.. i would advise to do about 1/4" at a time from the ends (for a total of 1/2") or maybe even less until it fits good.

I think that would only happen if you took in the band so much it was super tight.

If you take in a band A LOT you're going to end up with a horrible mismatch between band length and wire width because the wires are going to be like the whole bra, but if you just take in like 2 inches and you actually needed to take it in those 2 inches it shouldn't be a huge issue.

I did the /u/msmandrakeroot band shortening and it was pretty easy and worked great! I used a practice bra first but I didn't reall need to. I did it by hand and the stitches are holding up! No wire distortion either :)

It is very hit or miss. I've seen J or JJ cups before, just not often. I currently live close to a few Nordstrom Racks and it varies from store to store. I've never seen a K cup, but it doesn't mean it's not out there. They usually have larger cup sizes in larger band sizes, so you probably won't find a 30K but may have an easier time finding a 36-44K. Since you live kind of far, I would definitely call ahead and if they do have your size, ask them to hold it for you.

They usually have larger cup sizes in larger band sizes, so you probably won't find a 30K but may have an easier time finding a 36-44K.

This is what I've found as well, at least at the few Racks I've been to. I think that in general, while Nordstrom does better than most department stores, at some level they still operate on the belief and/or stocking premise (the latter, more likely) that band size and cup size are linearly related.

A few things.. tissue migration from wearing the wrong size bra, and it's possible it's just the way your body is. My daughters who ware 7 and 5 have a little bit of 'pudge tissue' in their armpits and they've never worn bras.. obviously. I've got some armpit pudge myself, but it's either from not wearing the proper styles of bras for me or it's just the way my body is. I'm less worried about it than I used to be.

Oh wait, maybe I went overboard with the "small questions" concept and should have added a bit more info. What I mean is that I don't really have fat in this area but when I put a bra on it creates bulges and the straps cut into them a bit.

If you're comfortable posting photos, you could make your own post for it and probably get better help there. If your bras otherwise fit well, it could be a problem with height of the underwires, wings, or strap placement. It's hard to tell without more detail.

Yeah that's totally fine. If you don't want to put up pictures, you can put up a more detailed description of the fit, with drawings if you think it would be helpful. We'd want to know things like:

what bras do you have that fit? (and what sizes)

what bras have you tried that do not fit? (and what sizes)

how tight is the band?

do the underwires end right where your breast tissue ends under your arm pits, or are they a little too wide or narrow? (check out where the indent from he underwire is after you take off your bra if it's hard to tell with the bra on)

is there any gapping at all anywhere?

are there any other places the bra cuts in at all?

are the straps uncomfortably wide such that they dig into your arm pits?

is there anything else that seems slightly off or even the slightest bit uncomfortable?

Now, granted, every bra's probably going to have some tiny issues and just because it has those doesn't mean it isn't a great fit. However, sometimes they can be useful information to help figure out more detail about things like shape or help figure out what bras would be good to try next that may not have those problems.

Some of us have slightly more noticeable muscle placement coming down from the shoulders which makes that little bit of breast tissue and fat above the armpit more noticeable. Some of us have the tail of Spence angled more upwards or just have a little more breast tissue than average there.

I used to be really self-conscious about it and not wear strappy tops or dresses but by now I couldn't care less.

I'm not even sure how things are supposed to feel anymore but I think it is.

Could be that it can't contain everything when you scoop and swoop?

Doubt it. I'm having an issue where everything goes into the inner part of the cup, and there's a slightly empty spot in the outer and lower part. My hypotheses right now are either shape issue or improper scoop and swooping but I feel like this wouldn't make sense given the current distribution of my breast tissue. (I could be totally mistaken, though)

From your measurements I get 26F or 28DD.

I used to be 30D and got 26F from the guide so I tried 28DD (sister size of 30D) and 28E (sister size of 26F), both of which gave me a lot of quadboobing, and then 28F which was the best out of what I tried.

Oh! It's weird but I was convinced that orange in a glass was caused by shallow breasts but it says here that there are other causes. I don't think I have shallow breasts so I had not considered this option, thanks for the info!

Do stores like La Senza and Victoria's Secret carry the correct sized bras? For example, is a 32B at La Senza exactly the same as a 32B in Nordstrom? I know La Senza/Victoria's Secret staffs tend to measure their customers incorrectly, but I was wondering if the bras they sell are incorrectly sized too.

I normally shop for bras at La Senza and I don't have a Nordstrom where I live.

For Victoria's Secret, the cups seem pretty comparable to other brands I've tried. The bands tend to be stretchier than other brands, though. So, if you usually wear a 32B in other brands, it'd be worth trying a 30C at VS just to check on the support the band gives you.

Ok, this is going to sound like a completely weird question coming out of nowhere seeing as I'm not either of these sizes, but I'm trying to figure out something. If you have a 30A and a 40A - it's 5 band sizes different with a difference of 410cc in cup volume. Now I get that cup size is dependent upon band size, but is there a way to figure out about how many "cup sizes" of difference that is? Or is it easier to just go with the 410cc as the answer to that question?

*Edit: Also the reason I ask this is because of a conversation I was trying to have with someone explaining cup size to them. I feel like hitting my head against a rock after talking to them.

a 40A is 5 cups volumetric ally larger than a 30A.. you basically count the band sizes. But this only works if the cup sizes you're comparing are the same. 30A>32A>34A>36A>38A>40A

However, it gets more complicated when you're trying to explain different band and letter size differences. Real life example.. my SIL was wearing 36B bras, however her actual size is 32DD. So in order to figure out how much of a difference that is volume wise, you need to sister size the 36B to a 32 band.. 36B>34C>32D. So, when you do that it's easy to see that it's just one cup size too small.

It's kind of complicated, and very similar to the concept of fractions with numerators and denominators. I suppose in this case, the denominator would be the band size, and the numerator would be the cup size. Sister sizing to determine the cup difference would be the equivalent to "finding the common denominator" if you will.

Thank you! :) That is what I needed to hear. Also, thank you for explaining with different band and letter sizes. I actually understood that way before. I don't know why I didn't get it when it came from the same cup letters.

You should be able to pull it out about an inch. More or less, depending on your personal comfort with tightness. You want to be in the tightest band that isn't uncomfortable. It sounds like your band is too big and your cups are too small. The straps shouldn't be holding up the bra (that's the band's job), they're mostly there to make sure the cups hold the right shape, so they shouldn't be very tight, just tight enough to not slip off your shoulders.

Its not just the gore, like the whole front rides up a bit and i do a little tug wiggle to get it back in place. Huh. It happens a lot, even on bras where I don't even fill out the cup fully. If I went up a cupsize I wouldn't even come close to filling it out.

I usually hate on VS (and I know most of you do too!) but I actually bought a bra there yesterday that fits me really well and I love! I found that their Pink line runs pretty small in the band, so a 32 fits me like a 30. I wore it all day today without any discomfort. Here is my review on bratabase

Tightening down 1 band size seems to work just fine, but going down more than that can cause problems with the fit. Tightening a 32B should be ok but a 34 would most likely be unworkable. (I don't have personal experience with this, just going off what I've seen here, so if anyone has better info please correct me!).

Hello! I'm measuring myself for the first time and I have a question about my band size. If it helps, I'm 5'4 and 120lbs. According to La Senza, I'm a 30B, but they didn't have that band size at the time, so I settled for buying 32Bs. I'm using a metal tape measure because I don't have a soft tape measure, btw.

Anyway, my tight underbust is 26". My comfortably snug underbust is 27". My standing bust is 31", leaning is 32", and lying is 32". If I did this correctly, that means I'm a 26DD? I have never even heard of a 26 band size before and I'm not that petite. Did I miss a step? I've seen other bra-measuring sites telling people to add 4 to their underbust measurement to get the band size. Was I supposed to do that when figuring out my bra size?

The bands of my current bras (32Bs) fit me decently, as long as they're set on the tightest hooks, so 26 was definitely a surprise. I'm not too shocked by the cup size because I understand that cup size is totally dependent of the band size. The 32B cups definitely suck at giving me coverage, especially when I do the good ol Scoop and swoop.

I'm just starting out my well-fitting-bra journey, and at the moment, I only have one bra that fits well: a turquoise Cleo Marcie in 32FF. I'm wondering what other bras to try with a similar shape, and with a fairly firm band - I'd honestly rather have to wear a bra with an extender and have it last longer than have it stretch out quickly.

Bratabse lists bras that are cut the same on each page, here's the page for the Marcie. All of these bras will fit and run slightly differently, so read reviews for each one, but they should have similar shapes. The Marcie (in my experience) runs firm in the band, but if you want firmer, you can always sister size it and order a 30G next time.

I wanted to apologize for my earlier curt response.. I was on my way up to a family function and my very nosy mother in law was reading on my phone because her word with friends game wasn't exciting enough :P I didn't read your post well enough and just saw the measurements, which is why I responded the way I did.

So I'm pretty new to all this, but I'm feeling confident that 32F is my size (for now). Except...I cannot figure out what shape of breast I have. I generally have trouble filling out the top, which would make me pretty bottom heavy, right? Except I just tried on the Curvy Kate Princess and it fits like a dream, as long as my straps are at the right length. And from what I can gather, CK Princess is meant for more even breasts. Also there's not enough data on Bratabase to suggest maybe more than three similar bras - none of which are molded cup, which is what I'm in the market for :(.

Also if anyone could explain how exactly the measurements on Bratabase relate to things like projection, that would be super cool.

The reason I wonder about all of this is because I have been shopping for strapless bras since I settled on a size. So far I've tried Panache's 3370, which did something quite strange. It fit...but my breast tissue would not go in the bottom of the cup. It literally felt like there was something in the way, and so the wire couldn't sit in the fold like it's supposed to. The Va Bien I bought was simply too large, and the gore too tall. Again, useless on a strapless, since they are generally worn with plunging necklines. Hopefully one of the next two strapless works out.

It could be that you have a lot of projection. The Panache strapless seems to be quite shallow, so there might not be enough room at the bottom of the cup. The bra might have to slide down to reach a point with enough depth to accommodate your projection. I think cup depth is the measurement that relates to projection, but I'm not an expert on bratabase measurements.

You've got a lot of good questions here that would benefit a lot of people to know. I think it would be worth making a separate thread if you don't get the answers you need.